Laura Mulvey's Theory (1992)
“In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between actvive/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto female figure which is styled accordingly”
1. Briefly summarise what you understand about Laura Mulvey’s theory on representation.
Reading Laura Mulvey’s theory I can understand that we –the audience of music videos are forced to see images that are determined by “male gaze”. The camera crew are usually men which reinforces Mulvey’s point as they usually film what they believe is ‘sexy’ such as women in swim wear and as a result it creates a particular image of women being passive but at the same time they are being objectified by men.
2. Find a videos that you feel illustrate your understanding.
Dizzie Rascal ‘Holiday’- This RnB music video follows Laura Mulvey’s theory. In this video woman are not seen as objects to men and portrayed as passive but also shows Mulvey’s idea of women being ‘dimembered’ as they do not focus on women as a whole but there’s a focus on parts of their body such as their legs. However men are shown as a whole just like Mulvey argues.
Eg: At the beginning of the video the woman in a bikini is wearing sunglasses which immediately shows that the camera is not focusing on her as a whole. The camera then begins to move to her legs and bottom which shows there’s meant to be a particular focus on them parts of her body. However as we enter the mansion we can see men who are fully dressed and shown as a whole.
However a video that challenges Laura Mulvey's theory is Alicia Keys 'Superwoman' as the video shows her as an intelligent determined woman who can multi task This is seen through her playing the piano. She is also appropriately dressed which instantly goes against Mulvey's theory of women always being dismembered. All the women shown in this video are portrayed as fighters and are independent which contradicts another of Mulvey's idea of women being objectified by men.
However a video that challenges Laura Mulvey's theory is Alicia Keys 'Superwoman' as the video shows her as an intelligent determined woman who can multi task This is seen through her playing the piano. She is also appropriately dressed which instantly goes against Mulvey's theory of women always being dismembered. All the women shown in this video are portrayed as fighters and are independent which contradicts another of Mulvey's idea of women being objectified by men.
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